Intro. Joseph - Greatness is the backdrop of the Godly man we will observe today. Not much is known of his life. But I believe when we get to heaven, Joseph will be honored beyond belief. He was a good man. A hard working, carpenter. We do not find him in the Scriptures after Jesus was 12 years of age. Yet, he was a man chosen by God to be the earthly “Daddy” of Jesus. A Man called Daddy by God!
I. His Ancestry - vs. 16-17 Though through the seed of a woman, necessary giving the earthly right to the throne of Israel. The ancestry of Joseph is divided into three fourteens, each embracing one marked era, and each ending with a notable event. A common method of which the Jews would be familiar that was used to aid memory.
A. The Covenant -
1. The Promise Commenced with Abraham - Genesis 12:3 "And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed."
Gal 3:8 "And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed."
2. It was Continued through Jacob and then Judah - Jacob, on his death bed: Genesis 49:10 "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be."
3. And Confirmed through David - David was made a promise in 2Sa 7:16 "And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever."
4. The Promise was Clarified in Prophecy - Jeremiah 23:5 "Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. 6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS."
5. Completed in Christ! Luke 1:32 "He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end." Jesus had the right of ancestry to the throne through both Joseph and Mary!
B. The City - Matt. 2:1 (also Luke 2:4)
1. The Place had been announced! Micah 5:2 "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting."
2. The Plan of God did not and will not fail - down to the smallest detail!
II. His Affection - vs. 18-19
A. He was a man of Commitment - He was betrothed, and was faithful to her!
Notice clearly, this was not a matter of breaking off an engagement - Joseph is called her “husband.” Betrothal with the Jews was a serious matter, not lightly entered into and not lightly broken. It was the covenant of marriage, not a mere engagement. They were legally bound and "an informal cancelling of betrothal was impossible”. As an engagement can be broken in our culture, this is not true of a betrothal. The covenant was in place and to break that covenant was adultery and punished with death.
B. He was a man of Conviction - Just! - He was just, righteous, and followed the law. He knew the Old Testament Scripture said: Leviticus 20:10 "...the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death."
C. He was a man of Compassion -
1. The Shock - She was found with child - He could not understand!
The Holy Ghost wrought in the chosen virgin the body of our Lord. There was no other way of his being born, for had he been of a sinful father, how should he have possessed a sinless nature? He is born of a woman, that he might be human, but not by man, that he might not be sinful. (Gen 3:15 - seed of the woman)
2. The Sympathy - He had a choice - Rejection or Mercy - vs. 19
D. He was a man of Chastity
- He lived according to God’s Instructions
- He took her as his wife
- He took full responsibility of a Husband
- He kept their purity until after the birth of Christ - vs. 25
III. His Attitude - vs. 20-24
A. Trusting enough to believe the baby was of the Holy Ghost - vs. 18, 20
1. Most, including us, would have said “Yeah right!”
2. This had NEVER occurred before!
3. His father never had a talk with him and told him this could happen
B. Willing to Raise God’s Son as his own vs. 21-23
1. He was told the Name of the Child (Jesus - Jehovah is Salvation)
This child was not named after a forefather!
2. He was told What this Child would do - He will save!
3. He was told Who this Child was - GOD with Us!
4. He gave to Christ his earthly trade - Mark 6:3 Jesus called a “carpenter”
C. Obedient to every move he was told to make - vs. 24
1. He woke up and he did as he had been told
2. He took Mary to himself with the full responsibility of care
Concl. I believe Joseph will be revered in heaven as one of the greatest and Godliest men of human history. God could have placed him in any situation in the Scriptures and he would have been found faithful, Yet he was still a man!
He still needed a savior - That is why he could not have been the father of Jesus. The seed that impregnated Mary was without SIN. It was of God, but God chose to use Joseph, a just man, to raise the Christ on earth - Joseph the unsung hero of Christmas.
